Treatment of Stage III and Nonmetastatic Stage IV Oropharyngeal Cancer

For information about the treatments listed below, see the Treatment Option Overview section.

Treatment of newly diagnosed stage III oropharyngeal cancer and stage IV oropharyngeal cancer may include:

• radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy given at the same time, for people with locally advanced cancer
• radiation therapy alone for people who cannot have chemotherapy
• chemotherapy given at the same time as radiation therapy
• chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy given at the same time as more chemotherapy
• a clinical trial of immunotherapy (nivolumab) with chemotherapy given at the same time as radiation therapy in people with cancer that has a higher risk of coming back
• a clinical trial of radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy
• a clinical trial of transoral surgery followed by standard- or low-dose radiation therapy with or without chemotherapy in people with HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer

Use our clinical trial search to find NCI-supported cancer clinical trials that are accepting patients. You can search for trials based on the type of cancer, the age of the patient, and where the trials are being done. General information about clinical trials is also available.